Corn and Black Bean Salad

A delicious, colourful summer salad for all occasions. Feel free to add other veggies as desired.  I often add avocado and some lemon juice.  

Sweet Corn Salad with Black Beans, Scallions and Tomatoes


Servings: Serves 6–8


Ingredients: 

• 8 ears corn on the cob
• 2 cups black beans (cooked or canned), drained and rinsed
• 4 scallions, chopped
• 1 cup grape tomatoes, cut in half
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar, or to taste
• 1 teaspoon coarse sea salt, plus more to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste
• 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro or basil, plus whole leaves for garnish

Directions: 

Shuck corn. In a shallow baking pan, stand each cob on its larger end, holding the tapered end with your noncutting hand. Using a sharp knife, slice kernels off; transfer kernels to a bowl. In a large frying pan, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil and sauté kernels until just softened, 5 to 6 minutes. Return corn to bowl and add beans, scallions, tomatoes and red pepper.

In a small bowl, combine vinegar, salt, pepper and remaining 2 tablespoons oil. Pour onto corn mixture, add cilantro or basil and mix well. Adjust seasoning to taste before serving. 



Courtesy of Oprah.com

Classic Vinaigrette with a Twist

This is my take on traditional vinaigrette.  I like the touch of sweetness added to my salad.  You can easily omit the maple syrup or substitute something else you prefer like honey, orange juice etc.


If you want to make, more just remember the ratio of 1:3:5 for the first three ingredients.


Maple Vinaigrette


1 Tbsp Dijon Mustard
3 Tbsp Red Wine Vinegar
5 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 Tbsp Maple Syrup


Combine all ingredients in a glass jar, shake and serve. Refrigerate unused amount.

Salad for Dinner

Here is a wonderful salad that I often serve warm as a main course for dinner. Make variations to suit your tastes- omit the olives, alter the type of onion or sausage; don't be afraid to improvise. I usually leave off the salad dressing as I think its packed full of flavour without it.

"Paella" Couscous Salad 

Yield: Makes 6 servings Active Time: 1 hr Total Time: 1 1/2 hr Ingredients  Salad: 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 1/2 lb Spanish chorizo (or other sausage), cut into 1/4-inch dice 1/2 cup finely chopped shallot 1 large garlic clove, minced 1 1/2 cups chicken broth 1/2 cup dry white wine 3/4 lb medium shrimp in shell (26), peeled and deveined 3/4 lb sea scallops, tough muscle removed from side of each if necessary, halved crosswise (quartered if large) 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice 1 (10-oz) box couscous (1 1/2 cups) 1/4 teaspoon crumbled saffron threads 1 cup frozen peas, thawed 1 large red bell pepper, finely diced 1 cup coarsely chopped drained pimiento-stuffed green olives (5 oz) 1/3 cup finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley Dressing: 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil 2 large garlic cloves, chopped 3/4 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon black pepper 1/8 teaspoon cayenne Accompaniment: lemon wedges Instructions Make salad: Heat oil in a large heavy skillet over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, then sauté chorizo and shallot, stirring, until chorizo is golden brown on edges, 3 to 4 minutes. Add garlic and sauté, stirring, 1 minute. Transfer mixture to a large bowl, scraping out skillet with a rubber spatula. Bring broth and wine to a boil in a 2 1/2-quart saucepan and cook shrimp, covered, until just cooked through, about 45 seconds. Transfer shrimp with a slotted spoon to a small bowl. Bring liquid in saucepan back to a boil and cook scallops, covered, until just cooked through, about 2 minutes. Transfer scallops with slotted spoon to bowl with shrimp and pour any liquid accumulated in bowl back into pan. Add lemon juice to seafood, then add salt and pepper to taste and toss to combine. Put couscous in a metal bowl. Reserve 1 3/4 cups cooking liquid in saucepan and discard remainder. Add saffron and bring liquid to a boil and pour over couscous. Let stand, covered tightly with plastic wrap, 5 minutes. Fluff couscous with a fork and add to chorizo. Stir in peas, bell pepper, olives, and seafood and toss to combine. Make dressing: Blend lemon juice, oil, garlic, salt, black pepper, and cayenne in a blender until smooth and pour over seafood salad, tossing to combine well. Let stand 30 minutes at room temperature to allow couscous to absorb dressing. Stir in parsley and season salad with salt and pepper. Cooks' note: · Salad can be made (without parsley) 2 hours ahead and chilled, covered. Bring to room temperature and stir in parsley just before serving.

Source - Gourmet | July 2002

Mixed Whole Grain Salad

As we approach warmer weather, consider this salad as a healthy accompaniment to barbecued ribs, chicken or fish.  It would also make an excellent item to pack for a picnic lunch.

Grain Salad

½ cup wild rice, rinsed

½ cup basmati rice, rinsed

¼ cup pearl barley

½ cup couscous

1 1/4 cups radicchio, thinly sliced

2 ounces stemmed, washed and well drained spinach thinly sliced

3 scallions, trimmed, thinly sliced to make ½ cup

¼ cup chopped Italian parsley leaves

Salt and pepper to taste

10 to 12 whole leaves of radicchio

Vinaigrette

¼ cup olive oil

¼ cup balsamic vinegar

1 tsp salt

½ tsp freshly ground pepper

Instructions

To save time, use four saucepans and cook all grains at the same time.

Put wild rice in a small saucepan and pour enough water to cover.  Bring to boil, season lightly with salt if desired.  Reduce heat to low and cook until tender, about 45 minutes, adding more water if necessary.  Drain and transfer rice to one section of a large cookie sheet and let cool.

Repeat same process with basmati rice.  Cook about 30 minutes

Repeat same process with pearl barley.  Cook about 20 minutes.

Boil water.  Put the couscous in a small saucepan.  Pour boiling water over top, just to cover, season lightly with salt and cook over low heat for 1 or 2 minutes, stirring occasionally.  If the couscous has not absorbed all the liquid, cover and let steam for about 2 more minutes.  Drain any remaining water, transfer to the tray, and fluff with a fork.

Allow all the grains to cool.  In a large bowl, combine them with all the salad ingredients (radicchio, spinach, scallion and parsley) and gently toss to combine.  Set aside.  The salad can be refrigerated at this point and finished close to serving time.

In a small bowl, whisk together vinaigrette ingredients and set aside.  When needed whisk again.

When ready to serve, toss grain salad mixture with just enough of the vinaigrette to moisten.  Correct the seasoning to taste with salt and pepper if necessary.

To serve, place a large radicchio leaf on each plate.  Spoon 1/3 cup of salad into each leaf and serve immediately.

Nutritional information (includes vinaigrette) per 1/3 cup serving:

174 calories, 31% fat (6g), 61% carbohydrates, 8% protein, 22 mg calcium